Martin Brady (Dublin North East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 48: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the way he envisages qualified adults benefiting from plans to bring their payments to the level of the State pension; the number of qualified adults he expects to qualify for a direct payment in their own right; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43155/06]

Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 91: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the way qualified adults will benefit from the commitment to bring their payments to the level of the State pension; the number of qualified adults who are expected to be eligible for a direct payment in their own right; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43150/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 48 and 91 together.

In the context of the recent Budget, I announced significant improvements in the rate of payment for qualified adults on State pensions and important changes in the way these payments will be made in the future. The Programme for Government contains a commitment "to introduce a personal pension entitlement for pensioner spouses currently in receipt of the qualified adult allowance, set at the level of a full non-contributory pension". The changes introduced in this budget mark a significant step in this regard, while setting in place a programme that will bring the Qualified Adults to the level of the State non-contributory pension within the next three years.

Arising from the Budget the increase payable in respect of Qualified Adults will increase by Eur23.70 per week for State Pension (Contributory), State Pension (Transition) and Invalidity Pension where the Qualified Adult is aged 66 years of age or over. This represents an increase of 15.9% in the rate of payment and brings the payment to 86.5% of the target rate. Prior to the budget the maximum payment for a qualified adult represented 82% of the State non-contributory Pension rate. Some 35,500 Qualified Adults will benefit from this increased level of payment.

The making of personal payments direct to Qualified Adults was introduced for new claimants to State Pension Transition (SPT) and State pension contributory (SPC) with effect from 1 October 2002. Under the procedures currently in place, personal and Qualified Adult payments are made as a combined amount to the applicant. However, applicants may choose to avail of the facility to be paid separately. Thus far, a total of 1,400 couples have opted to have the qualified adult allowance paid directly to the spouse.

Following the changes announced in the Budget qualified adults will be entitled to automatically receive their portion of the pension as a separate payment. Claim forms will be amended accordingly and there will be an opt-out option included for customers who wish to be paid their pension jointly. The revised arrangements will apply to new applicants for SPT, SPC and SPn/c with effect from September 2007.

The operational arrangements for implementing this initiative are currently being devised in my Department and will be finalised shortly. It is envisaged that some 2,000 additional Qualified Adults will benefit from this direct payment of the IQA (Increase for Qualified Adult) during 2007. In a full year approximately 6,000 Qualified Adults would benefit based on current trends.